Bare metal stenting of the iliac arteries

A significant subset of patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) has iliac artery involvement that requires treatment. The development of bare metal stents has improved the short- and long-term outcomes of endovascular repair and has become first line therapy. Open surgical bypass has been reserved for extremely complex anatomic morphologies or endovascular failures. It is unclear whether primary stenting is superior to angioplasty with provisional stenting but if angioplasty is used alone, it is likely only appropriate for the most focal lesions. Self-expanding and balloon-expandable stents have unique characteristics that are suitable to different lesion morphologies. Both stent-types have demonstrated similar outcomes. Herein, we review the practice and results of bare metal stents in the iliac arteries.